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It's time to continue our College Basketball odds series with a Pepperdine-Gonzaga prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Pepperdine-Gonzaga.
The Gonzaga Bulldogs are two games behind the Saint Mary's Gaels in the West Coast Conference race. They will host Saint Mary's before the end of the WCC regular season, so they know they can gain back one game in head-to-head competition, but the problem is how they will gain back the other game. All the Zags can do is win out and handle their end of the bargain. They will need another WCC team to knock off the Gaels in order to share the conference championship instead of watching SMC win the league outright. It's not where GU wanted or hoped to be at this point in the season, but that's the bed the Zags made for themselves by losing to an Oregon State team which — if you are paying attention to the WCC this year — has been clobbered in three of its last four games and has lost to the woeful Portland Pilots. That Oregon State loss might haunt Gonzaga for a good long while if Saint Mary's does win the outright WCC championship in a few weeks.
Here are the Pepperdine-Gonzaga College Basketball Odds, courtesy of FanDuel
College Basketball Odds: Pepperdine-Gonzaga Odds
Pepperdine: +24.5 (-110)
Moneyline: +2500
Gonzaga: -24.5 (-110)
Moneyline: -10000
Over: 157.5 (-110)
Under: 157.5 (-110)
How to Watch Pepperdine vs. Gonzaga
Time: 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT
TV: ESPN Plus
*Watch college basketball LIVE with fuboTV (Get Access | Save $30)*
Why Pepperdine Will Cover The Spread/Win
Did you remember how the first Gonzaga-Pepperdine game went, in Malibu, just after Christmas Day? Pepperdine looked like it would get blown out at halftime, trailing by almost 20, but then the Waves came crashing down upon Gonzaga in a furious second-half rally. Pepperdine pulled within four points late in regulation before ultimately losing, but the Waves covered the spread and made Gonzaga sweat. If Pepperdine can do anything close to that here, it will easily cover with the spread being in the mid-20s. We also have to point out that Gonzaga played an intense, emotional game against a solid San Francisco team on Thursday night. It wasn't a squeaker, but USF did keep the game moderately close, getting within six points near the three-minute mark of regulation. Gonzaga was never in real danger of losing, but San Francisco did linger and made GU have to work for all 40 minutes to fully put that game away. After all that hard work on Thursday, are we really sure Gonzaga is going to max out and play this game with the foot on the accelerator on Saturday? It might be the kind of game GU jogs through instead of going all-out for all 40 minutes. That would enable Pepperdine to lose by 20 and cover, not by 35.
Why Gonzaga Will Cover The Spread/Win
Gonzaga was inconsistent against Pepperdine the last time these teams met, so you know that GU coach Mark Few is going to hammer it into his players to stay focused and develop better habits. March Madness is approaching, and you know that Gonzaga generally does lift into form at this time of year. The Zags usually improve their habits and responses because they know it's go time and a moment of truth for this team, which has generally underperformed relative to expectations. You will see Gonzaga play with urgency even after the tough win over San Francisco on Thursday night.
Final Pepperdine-Gonzaga Prediction & Pick
Gonzaga was so wobbly against Pepperdine several weeks ago. GU probably puts the foot down here and wins by 30. Take the Zags in spite of the huge spread.
Final Pepperdine-Gonzaga Prediction & Pick: Gonzaga -24.5
